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Kuwait Municipality studying possibility to ban shisha smoking - 

Minister of Public Works and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Dr. Fadhil Safar stressd here on Monday the need to take the necessary requirements and regulations to prohibit smoking and the hubbly bubbly, known as "shisha," in public places, restaurants and cafes.

The minister told KUNA while attending the 12th meeting of the Higher Committee for planning in Kuwait Municipality that smoking and shisha constitute negative aspects of civilization and harmful to public health.

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• Students shout anti-smoking slogans in Kuwait mall 

Manama: A group of young students surprised shoppers at one of Kuwait's most frequented malls by shouting anti-smoking slogans and carrying posters asking smokers to stub out their cigarettes.

The stunt, unprecedented in Kuwait where smoking is a major issue, was meant to embarrass those who flouted the law that bans smoking in malls and other closed places, Shuaa Al Qadhi, the head of public relations, said.

Several of the shoppers and people at the mall felt uneasy when they saw the young girls and boys urging them to put out their cigarettes and they complied, she said

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Kuwait- Officers violate 'no-smoking' ban at airport 

An officer and his colleagues were referred for interrogation for violating the ban on smoking and lighting their cigarettes at unauthorized places inside the halls of Kuwait International Airport, reports Al-Rai daily. A security source said the officers were caught by surveillance camera at the airport while they lighted and smoked cigarettes on duty at the security checkpoints and inside the lobbies. He said the officers were not bothered they were breaking anti-smoking law which they enforce on passengers.

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Health Ministry holds anti-smoking fair 

Ministry of Health inaugurated here on Tuesday an exhibition aimed at encouraging smokers to refrain from smoking under the slogan (My decision is to give up smoking now) coinciding with the World No Tobacco Day. Public health specialist and member of the national program to combat smoking, Dr. Amal al-Yahya said that the World No Tobacco Day is among the most significant occasions medical clinics are keen to highlight. She pointeded out that the Health Fair took place in the Ministry of Health for the presence of more than 2,000 employees a large proportion of whom are smokers and, thus, the ministry thought it was essential to start the awareness campaign in the ministry and then expand outside

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Kuwaitis spend KD72m on smoking annually 

Some KD72 million is spent annually on smoking in Kuwait, a number of health officials said here yesterday. Their remarks came on the occasion of the 'World No Tobacco Day', which falls on May 31. They said smokers in Kuwait reached three percent of the country's population and that the Ministry of Health is well-aware of smoking hazards and is working hard to combat such bad habit and its consequences.

The ministry's celebration of the event is not limited to pinpoint challenges, but also focusing on terminating the smoking phenomenon as a whole," Health Ministry Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Affairs Dr Youssef Al-Nisf said. On his part, Director of Vocational Health Department at the ministry Dr Ahmad Al-Shatti said an average of 2,330 cigarettes are consumed by a regular smoker each year in Kuwait.

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Kuwaiti doctor warns against using e-cigarettes 

A health expert has doubted that using the electronic cigarette can help smokers quit the harmful habit.

Dr. Sami Al-Nasser, member of the National Program for Combating Smoking, said in an interview with KUNA that such an allegation is not based on scientific conclusions. Moreover, there have been no assertions from authoritative organizations, namely the World Health Organization, that the fake cigarette is effective in aiding the addicted to quit smoking . . .

Dr. Al-Nasser indicated at affirmations by several doctors and experts that the electronic cigarette is also harmful for it also contains nicotine, and expressed regret that its usage has been spreading, along with advertisement campaigns potraying it as healthy, as well as luring teenagers to use it with various flavors and colors.

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LETTERS: The case of the lit cigarette 

Kuwait's MoH mulls heavy fines on smoking in public places 

The Ministry of Health led by Dr Hilal Al-Sayer is waiting for approval of the recommendation it forwarded to the Council of Ministers to implement anti-smoking law and the mechanism for its implementation at all public places, reports Al-Rai daily.

The daily, quoting a source, disclosed the proposed decision requires cooperation among the Health Ministry and its Interior counterpart for its accomplishment. “The proposal includes fines of upto KD 50, and the amount may be increased if possible”, he stated, saying the Ministry of Interior will be in charge of the fines’ collection when violations are committed, and the outcome will be posted at the ministry’s website.

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• Support for enforcement of Kuwait smoking ban  

Members of the public yesterday expressed their support for enforcing Kuwait's 15-year-old legislation banning smoking in public places. This followed news reports in local media, which quoted a Ministry of Health (MoH) source as stating that new arrangements are to be put in place to enforce the law, which was passed in 1995. The new arrangements will include cooperation between officials of the ministries of health and interior, with the latter to take responsibility for collecting monetary fines of up to KD 50 for smoking in a public place, the official said.

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• Plan to enforce no-smoking law at Kuwait Airport 

Acting Director-General of the General Airport Security Department Brigadier General Khaled Al-Saqubi has hinted a plan to impose the maximum penalty on anyone who smokes at Kuwait airportKuwait airport, reports Al-Jarida daily. The penalty, which has rarely been imposed is normally KD 100.

"A law on this issue was enacted many years ago but has never been implemented. All the areas, including the restaurants, are mostly no-smoking zones although some places have been designated for smokers.

Disclosing the penalties include imprisonment and other legal procedures, Al-Saqubi said these penalties will be imposed in the next few days

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NGOs urge gov''ts'' ban on duty-free tobacco sales 

The Network for Accountability of Tobacco is urging on Wednesday governments to stand firm in their progress toward a ban on duty-free tobacco sales.

The message is timed with the meeting of 168 countries reaching the mid-point in their final round of negotiations on a WHO protocol to the global tobacco treaty aiming to curb tobacco smuggling.

"Tobacco corporations have organized a powerful coalition of anti-tax and duty-free trade associations to try and weaken or derail treaty negotiations," explains Brayan Hirsch from the Network in a statement for Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).

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''No smoking'' public clinics offer nicotine patches to ppl in Kuwait 

The Ministry of Health announced that 'no smoking' clinics have began to offer nicotine patches to those intending to quit the habit.

Head of the anti-smoking committee Dr. Hamdiyya Al-Fadhli told KUNA Wednesday that these clinics, equipped with specialised teams, have helped many people quit smoking.

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• Study: In 1991, tobacco companies saw war as a marketing opportunity 

A study published in July in the American Journal of Public Health looked at internal tobacco company documents to determine if marketing efforts were aimed at servicemembers during the Gulf War.

Researchers found tobacco companies saw the conflict as a commercial opportunity and targeted servicemembers with free cigarettes, direct advertising, phone cards and homecoming parties.

The military, which often viewed the tobacco companies as benefactors, restricted the activity at times but frequently allowed it, according to “Everywhere the Soldier will Be: Wartime Tobacco Promotion in the U.S.”

Tobacco companies began producing and shipping free cigarettes within the first month of the war.

One company sent 10,000 cartons via the Department of Defense and others were on deck with 42,000 before the DOD acknowledged the free cigarettes were against policy and blocked further shipments, according to the study’s two researchers, Elizabith Smith and Ruth Malone . . .

Barred from providing free cigarettes, tobacco companies turned to branded merchandise such as baseball caps and playing cards.

“RJ Reynolds noted that ‘troops in Saudi Arabia definitely know that Camel Joe is behind them’ as they had received ‘over 5,000 packs of Camel playing cards … [and] a variety of premium items including sunglasses, audio cassettes and cup cozies,’” the study said. . . .

Philip Morris executives said they were “keenly interested in capitalizing on the successful military operation” and “continuing the association we started last year with the troops.”

“Over forty locations now have welcome home signs in place featuring Marlboro brand identification,” a military sales manager said in June 1991, according to the study. The company also produced the largest homecoming event for Desert Storm at Camp Lejeune, N.C., and similar events in Germany featured “extensive signage for Marlboro,” the study said.

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NGOs unite to promote breast feeding, tobacco control, and safe water  

Corporate Accountability International (CAI) representative Tracy Hewat told on Thursday the World Health Assembly (WHO) that water, tobacco and food - are tied to development, and have an impact on achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG's).

CAI is a coalition of 80,000 members and supporters around the world said in a statement issued.

"The global tobacco epidemic still claims more than five million lives each year. Full and effective implementation of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) is urgently needed. Preventing the spread of the tobacco epidemic to developing countries will not only save lives, but also promote strong economies," said Hewat.

FCTC Article 5.3 provides a framework for safeguarding against conflicts of interest between the private sector and public interest on a range of health issues - from access to safe ddrinking water to marketing of unhealthy foods to children.

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British American Tobacco joins forces with Kuwaiti Co-Ops to combat underage smoking (PDF) 

British American Tobacco joined forces with prominent cooperative societies to launch the Partners in Responsibility youth smoking prevention campaign in Kuwait. The campaign, which aims to raise awareness of laws that regulate underage smoking, was launched on the 4th of May 2008 in all outlets of Dasmah & Bnaid Al-Qar, Bayan, Al-Adeiliyyah, Kaifan and Al-Rawda & Hawally cooperative societies.

Bassem Bekdache, Head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs for British American Tobacco in the GCC stated that “We hope that the Partners in Responsibility campaign will help increase awareness of the law. We take the matter of youth smoking prevention very seriously and are backing up words with actions. In addition to Kuwait, this campaign has also been rolled out in Bahrain and Qatar with more countries to follow by the end of 2008”

Dasmah & Bnaid Al-Qar CO-OP Society General Manager, Mohamed Ahmed Ashour, echoed the initiative’s objective “We are sending a message that we don’t sell cigarettes to under 21’s. It’s the Law”.

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